The Arab Spring promised so much before these attacks on the U.S. embassies in Cairo and Benghazi last night. But I am not about to throw it out of the window wholly just yet.

First things first, the majority of Libyans and Egyptians need to condemn these certain religious groups who do not recognize that the 18th century has passed yet. Freedom of speech is an essential feature of any true democracy based on the Western model and it must be protected.

And though only sections, and not the majority of Arabs, are in support of these killings, where were the security forces meant to protect people from angry mobs? Where were the police and the military? That is what truly is troubling. Those in power are not willing to stop such horrors from occurring when something as harmless as an unflattering portrayal of Muhammad, in some arcane film, appears on the internet.

And what role did the Arab media play in these murders? They were the ones who exploited this practically unknown film for ratings. Where do they stand amongst the guilty?

The people, and especially the leaders, of Libya and Egypt need to send messages of apology and regret to the United States in order to reassure the West that our ambassadors and diplomats are safe in their lands. And to keep them labeled as so-called democratic nations, freedom of speech must be better protected in these two emerging democracies.